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Article

1 Mar 2006

Author:
SustainAbility

[PDF] full report: "Taxing issues - Responsible business and tax"

Even many of the world’s acknowledged ‘CR [Corporate Responsibility] leaders’ do not appear to view tax as a CR issue. Soon after receiving the UK’s Business in the Community ‘company of the year’ award in 2005, BHP Billiton received a tax, interest and penalty charge of Au$989 million from the Australian Tax Office. The company is contesting the charge, but other CR leaders such as BP, Starbucks, Novo Nordisk and Vodafone have also all been cited in recent years as companies undertaking controversial — though entirely legal — tax planning techniques. [Gives examples of companies that provide information linking tax with corporate responsibility: "basic information" - BBVA, BP, Co-operative Bank, Kesko, Philips, Placer Dome (part of Barrick Gold), PotashCorp, SABMiller, Talisman, Unilever; "systematic" information - Anglo American, Statoil. Also refers to GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca]